10x/0.25, achondrite, LMScope, mars, Nikon D810, northwest africa, polarized, scope2, zerene stacker

NWA 8159 Meteorite Thin Section

NWA 8159 Meteorite Thin Section

NWA 8159 Meteorite Thin Section

NWA 8159 was quenched from a basaltic melt ~2.3 billion years ago at a time when Mars contained bodies of liquid H2O. Suddenly ejected from the surface millions of years ago this piece of the war god became a migrant searching for a new home. By fortune it found Earth.

In this thin section, my first taken with the Nikon D810 combined with the LMScope adapter, mineral grains are clearly visible in the lower portion. Indeed, the lower eighth of the thin section seems distinct from the upper. Other noticeable features include the shock melt veins and the glassy clasts. And, if you have stared at it long enough, you may see interesting fractal patterns formed by the black veins which run throughout the entire fragment.

Additional details can be found at Meteorite Studies.

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